


is there anything love can’t do?

by goddamn



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Drama & Romance, Fluff and Angst, Inspired by Tenki no Ko | Weathering With You, M/M, Magical Realism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:07:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 15,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24230293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goddamn/pseuds/goddamn
Summary: This is a story in which weather and fate intertwined to create a heart-wrenching romance between two boys, Jung Jaehyun and Kim Doyoung. That summer day, at the top of the clouds, they changed the shape of the sky.alt: a weathering with you! au
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung
Comments: 5
Kudos: 26





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hi, this is my first EVER fic. i guess self isolation really did something to me and it forced me to by more productive LOL. will definitely encourage you to listen to the whole weathering with you album while reading. i changed the locations and stuff to fit our korean characters, hope you’ll understand when some of the history is a bit wrong. thanks and hope you’ll enjoy reading~

A boy is in a hospital, holding the hands of a woman desperately who appears to be asleep or in a coma. He clings onto the last thread of life of the dying woman, and a single tear makes its way down his face. He looks out of the window at the buildings of Seoul being drenched by a torrential downpour with tear-streaked cheeks. It was rather ironic. In the midst of the rain, a small stream of light breaks through the clouds and illuminates a single building.

Entranced by that magical stream of light, the boy leaves the hospital with hurried steps and runs towards it. He climbs the stairs leading him to the roof of an abandoned building, and notices a single red _torii_ gate, illuminated in a pool of light. He approaches the gate and clasps his hands in a silent prayer.

 _Please,_ he begs.

In a flash of light, the boy teleports to an unknown realm above the clouds, high up in the sky. He flies through the sky and sees translucent white fish floating around him, their bodies glinting in the light. _Fish?_ The boy looks around in wonder.

 _This scene, it feels like a dream,_ the boy thinks.

And this is how the story starts, in which weather and fate intertwined to create a heart-wrenching romance between two boys. That summer day, at the top of the clouds, changed the shape of the sky.

-

Jaehyun peered out to the sea below him, hands gripping tight on the handles of the boat. _I’m really doing this,_ he thought, giddy with excitement. He was finally escaping from his hometown in Andong, and to the magical city of Seoul. Jaehyun thought of his unsupportive brothers, his demeaning friends and his over-religious parents who just could not embrace his homosexual identity and made sure to remind him of that everyday, and his blood boiled in resentment.

 _Never again,_ he thought firmly. _I’m never going back to that place again._ As Jaehyun lifted his head to gaze at the nearing cityscape of Seoul, he felt a jolt of excitement stir in his chest. _This is it,_ he thought. _A place for me to finally be myself._

( _Sike_ , the universe thought.)

It seemed as though the universe just could not stand Jaehyun having a good time for more than 10 minutes, because the weather suddenly took a sharp turn and the boat was shaken by a torrential downpour. The boat swayed violently and Jaehyun lost his balance, falling to the ground with the rain beating on him. Jaehyun grit his teeth as he clung onto a pole for his dear life, nearly sliding off the boat. _Is this how life is always going to treat him?_ Jaehyun thought bitterly.

However, it seemed as though luck was by his side for once when he felt an arm grip his tightly. Jaehyun looked up, and through the blur of rain, he saw the figure of a man helping him. The man pulled him across the dock to shelter, and Jaehyun glanced up to peer into the stranger’s smiling face.

“Thanks,” he muttered quietly. The man smiled widely again and Jaehyun felt a flash of irrational annoyance course through him. When the boat finally reached the shores of Seoul, the man tipped his head to Jaehyun. “Hey kid, want to have a drink and food with me? It’s on me,” the stranger winked at him.

Jaehyun squinted at him in suspicion and weighed his options carefully. However, it seemed like free food won over everything else when his empty stomach made its presence known. “Sure,” he agreed, and the man grinned _again_.

“Stop smiling all the time, it's annoying,” Jaehyun grouched. The man looked surprised for a second, before letting out a loud bark of laughter. “A real cheerful kid, aren’t you,” he chuckled in amusement and Jaehyun shrugged his shoulders carelessly. “It’s Johnny, by the way,” The man introduced himself warmly. “Jaehyun,” Jaehyun replied. With that, they headed to eat together. Before long, they were at a nearby restaurant, scarfing down ramen with ferocious intensity. My first meal in Seoul, Jaehyun thought giddily, and he inhaled his food. Beside him, Johnny nudged his arm with his elbow. “Say, kid, what got you here in Seoul without your parents?”

Jaehyun looked down to his bowl. “Reasons,” he said quietly.

Johnny nodded sympathetically and patted his back gently, as if he understood his predicament.

The two of them ate in silence.

After their meal, they stood outside the restaurant. “Hey Jaehyun, if you ever need help, call me,” Johnny extended his hand and gave Jaehyun his business card. Jaehyun glanced at the card suspiciously. _“Johnny Seo, Seasonal Supernatural Shenanigans, call at 98003726”_ , it read.

Jaehyun pocketed the card gingerly and bowed to the kind man one last time. “Thank you,” he said, with genuine sincerity.

“I’ll see you soon then,” Johnny winked.

Johnny entered his life fast like a sudden burst of a whirlwind and the man left just as fast, leaving Jaehyun by himself in the light drizzle.

 _Huh, it’s raining,_ He thought.

Jaehyun took a deep breath, and ventured into the vast city of Seoul.

-

Jaehyun quickly found himself in over his head in Seoul where he was unable to find a job to sustain himself. He took showers at cheaply-priced internet cafes and ate only instant ramen and soup for his meals. The rest of the time he spent wandering the streets of Seoul aimlessly and looking for alleys to sleep in and escape the perpetual rain. After knocking over a trash can accidentally, Jaehyun found a discarded pistol hidden among the trash and decided to keep it for protection. Every night as he huddled against a random alley wall to get ready for another night of fitful sleep, he had a protective hand on his pistol. Young and reckless as he was, he was still aware of gangs lurking around, preying on weaklings. And Jaehyun was _not_ going to die when he promised himself that he was going to live a better life.

Jaehyun slumped forward on a table in a random McDonald’s. As he felt his eyes starting to close from exhaustion and hunger, he felt a dash of raw fear. Jaehyun found himself in a rare moment of self-doubt. _Did I make a mistake going to Seoul by myself?_

He was knocked out after a few minutes.

“Hey.”

Jaehyun had a while of uninterrupted slumber before he was gently shaken awake by a stranger. As he opened his eyes groggily, Jaehyun came face to face with a boy. A rather cute one, in fact.

The boy, who was wearing an employee outfit, tilted his head to the side, his hand on Jaehyun’s shoulder. _He kind of looks like a bunny,_ Jaehyun thought groggily, and he rubbed the sleep from his eyes slowly.

“Here.” The pink-cheeked boy handed him a McSpicy burger and Jaehyun received it with a little confusion.

“Thanks…?” Jaehyun said, his voice trailing off as he looked at the boy questioningly. The boy blushed a little as he fiddled with his hands. “I thought you looked hungry,” he explained. “It’s on the house.” Jaehyun stared at the boy with stars in his eyes, unbeknownst to him that he was reducing the poor boy into a blushing mess.

“Hope you enjoy it then.” The boy finally spluttered out, before scurrying away, leaving behind a steaming burger and warmth-filled Jaehyun in his wake.

Jaehyun stared at the boy as his figure grew smaller, and hues of colour erupted in his mind. _How_ _odd,_ he mused. The boy reminded him of both the rain and sunshine.

-

After careful contemplation, a slightly abashed Jaehyun decided to give Johnny a call. When Johnny finally picked up, Jaehyun could already picture the knowing smirk on his face as if saying: “I knew you would call sooner or later”. Johnny’s light laughter was the last thing he heard before he ended the call with shaky hands. Unknowingly, his hand clenched into a fist.

Jaehyun headed to his home to discuss the details about a job offer. At the house, Johnny explained the job offer to a defeated Jaehyun: he knew that if he were to reject, he would starve out on the streets. In the end, Jaehyun was to be an assistant for a magazine focusing on supernatural occurrences in Korea, lovingly named “Seasonal Supernatural Shenanigans” by Johnny, the head of the magazine.

With an exchange of handshakes, the deal was set. In return for living space, food, a working phone and rather meagre pay, Jaehyun became Johnny’s assistant and reporter for all things supernatural. Although Jaehyun was slightly shy at first, he soon opened up to his boss and only friend in Seoul.

“Jaehyuns! Come here!” Johnny called out from his desk.

“Yes boss?” Jaehyun walked over to Johnny’s desk and peered over to the magazine that was splayed open.

“I need you to investigate the rumours of this so-called ‘100% Sunshine Boy’ ”, Johnny said glancing up to meet Jaehyun’s dubious gaze. “Apparently he has the powers to stop rain.”

Jaehyun shot him a look of incredulity and disbelief. “You want me to investigate _what_?”

“I know this sounds ridiculous and all-” Johnny glared at Jaehyun when he scoffed, “-but if we do a good job at writing the article, think of the attention we’re going to get!” He rubbed his hands in glee and he looked at Jaehyun with shining eyes.

Jaehyun sighed, but agreed nonetheless. After all, Johnny was the one paying him to do this.

As the days passed by, Jaehyun spent his days cleaning the house and office, interviewing people, and developing his articles. Although the work was hard and the pay was low, Jaehyun finally found himself living a steady and functioning life in Seoul. He was satisfied with how things were going on for him for the time being. It could have been worse, Jaehyun thinks as he mopped the floor. He shuddered at the sight of a mysterious stain in the corner. _At least I’m not out on the streets starving._ With that happy thought, he continued scrubbing.

-

“Hey you!”

A sudden shout ripped through the air. The thud of somebody being slammed to a wall quickly followed.

Jaehyun stopped in his tracks and quickly turned around. He felt his blood thundering in his ears. _Who was that?_

He quickly ducked behind an electric pole, and peeked out to spot the cause of the commotion. Jaehyun caught sight of a burly man pushing a smaller man against a wall, and he gulped nervously.

He squinted his eyes and he swore his heart stopped for a second. _It was the boy from_ _McDonalds!_ Jaehyun panicked silently.

“Hey pretty boy, do you want to follow us? We can offer an easy job to you.” Jaehyun blanched when he saw the men leer at him as he got closer to the boy’s face. His heart ached for the poor boy when he saw him looking so uncomfortable.

“A pretty face like yours would help us greatly,” The man traced a finger on the boy’s face and he flinched violently.

At that, Jaehyun felt his blood boil.

Without much thought, he dashed out and pushed the two men back roughly. “Hey, what do you think you guys are doing? Pick on someone your own size!” Jaehyun shouted, and quickly maneuvered the shaking boy to shield him behind Jaehyun’s larger frame. As usual, Jaehyun was always one with bad judgement. _Jung Jaehyun you idiot! You’re at least 10 cm shorter than this meathead!_ He berated himself mentally.

The man blinked at him.

Taking advantage of his momentary confusion at their current situation and incredulity at Jaehyun’s outrageous stupidity, Jaehyun took the boy’s hand and pulled him along. The boy’s grip on his hand was tight and unwavering, and Jaehyun’s heart clenched.

“RUN!” Jaehyun screamed, and the both of them started running.

Apparently it was the end of Jaehyun’s luck for the day, because the man quickly caught up with them. He pulled the end of Jaehyun’s shirt, and he stumbled backwards.

The man pushed him down roughly, and soon Jaehyun was lying on his back, heaving.

“You think you’re a hero? Let me teach you a lesson of minding your own business,” He sneered, and he struck a fist against Jaehyun’s face. Behind him, the boy sucked in a sharp breath.

Through the aggressive pounding of his head, Jaehyun vaguely remembered the pistol in his pocket.

 _The gun was real,_ he reminded himself.

Before the next swing of the man’s fist could come, Jaehyun pulled out the pistol and pointed the barrel straight into the man’s ugly face. The pistol shook slightly in his trembling hands.

There were a few suffocating beats of silence. The man stared at Jaehyun in shock, but soon regained his senses. “You’re too scared to fire that pistol. You won’t dare, huh, coward?” He snorted.

Jaehyun gulped. “Try me.”

The man snickered in his face, and Jaehyun wanted so badly to slap the smirk off his face.

Needless to say, Jaehyun pulled the trigger.

As a reflex, the man lurched backwards and the bullet lodged into a pole, missing the man’s face by inches. It seemed as though time stopped for a few moments, as Jaehyun stared at the man with the pistol in his hands, and the man staring back with wide eyes.

Behind him, the boy shoved the man off Jaehyun and pulled him to his feet.

“Quick,” He hissed. “Hurry up, let’s go!” Jaehyun stumbled to his feet in a daze. With an insistent tug of his hand, Jaehyun and the boy took off into the streets, away from the startled cries of the man, away from the echoing sound of a gun being fired that still seemed to be ringing in Jaehyun’s ears.

-

Jaehyun was dragged to an abandoned building, and he collapsed to his feet. His heart and mind felt as if they were racing a mile per second.

The sounds of panting echoed in the room.

“Why did you interfere?” A sharp voice cut through the silent air, and Jaehyun whipped his head around to face the owner of the voice.

“What?” He choked out. Of all things he had expected will come out from the boy’s, who he assumed he just saved, mouth, _that_ was surely unprecedented.

“Why did you have to be so careless? If you didn’t have that gun, he would have beaten you up to a pulp! Where did you even get that gun from anyways, do you know you could be arrested for illegal possession of a gun?” The boy spit out, freezing Jaehyun with an icy glare.

Under the boy's glower, Jaehyun could only stiffen up. He felt more and more angry when he saw that the boy looked like he had no intentions softening his death glare directed at him.

Anger bubbled up in his chest. Jaehyun looked at the pistol in his hand. He was still in disbelief at the fact that he had almost killed someone. Jaehyun stared at his hands, and an ugly feeling gripped his heart. A knot formed in his throat, and he flung the gun across the room.

The weapon clattered on the floor loudly, but it was not loud enough to drown out the roaring in Jaehyun’s ears.

Jaehyun buried his head in his arms.

“What are you talking about? Would you have preferred that pervert whore you out at a brothel somewhere?” Jaehyun retorted. The boy flinched slightly. Immediately, Jaehyun felt slight regret at his harsh tone and blunt words, but he still felt wronged. _How is it that everything he did seemed to be the wrong thing to do?_ Jaehyun thought bitterly.

“And I didn’t get the gun illegally! I found it in the trash can….” He trailed off, shooting the boy a slightly guilty look.

The boy sighed, and flopped down next to Jaehyun, where he sat with his head down. He reached out his hand, and touched Jaehyun’s hand tentatively.

“Hey, I’m sorry for being so harsh. I just… …” The boy muttered. “By the way, thanks for saving me… …” He fiddled with his fingers nervously.

Jaehyun shot a look at the blushing boy, and smiled.

“Hey, I never asked, but what’s your name?”

“Doyoung.”

Now with a name to the face, Jaehyun grinned.

“I’m Jaehyun,” He replied.

Doyoung glanced at Jaehyun with a glint in his eyes. He stood up, dusted his pants off, and stretched a hand towards Jaehyun.

“Hey, do you want to get out of here?” Jaehyun’s mouth twitched, and accepted the hand.

“Let me take you somewhere.”

-

Bursting through the door, Jaehyun stepped out onto the roof of the abandoned building, hot on Doyoung’s heels. Rivulets of rain fell, the steady “drip-drip” of the water droplets being a constant calm amidst the ceaseless chaos stirring in Jaehyun’s heart.

“Come here!” Doyoung exclaimed, and tugged Jaehyun towards a red _torii_ gate. The clouds in the stormy sky seemed to part, and a stream of light illuminated the gate in a spotlight. Doyoung stood at the edge of the roof, hands gripping the railings tight.

He turned around, and shot Jaehyun a dazzling smile.

“Would you like the rain to stop?”

Around them, the rain fell heavier. Doyoung smiled Jaehyun cheekily, and Jaehyun’s heart fluttered.

“What do you mean?”

Doyoung just smiled in silence, and clasped his hands together in a prayer.

The wild flowers rustled in the wind. Jaehyun peered down from the roof of the abandoned building, and he could see it. The rain was everywhere: raindrops were bouncing off umbrellas, splashing into puddles on grey streets, and shining like diamonds on electricity cables.

It was at that moment, when the rain stopped falling.

The stormy sky lifted to give way to the sun, and sunlight filtered through the clouds. The warm sunshine washed away the water droplets on the buildings around Jaehyun, basking him in warmth. A jolt of startling realisation washed over him.

“So you really are the sunshine boy!” Jaehyun turned to stare at Doyoung, who just stood there with a bright smile. _(It was no wonder that he was the sunshine boy, when he had a smile that could rival the sun.)_

The weather sure was a mysterious thing.

Doyoung nodded, beaming. A circle of light seemed to illuminate Doyoung, and Jaehyun was in awe.

-

With the discovery of Doyoung’s hidden identity, came a series of opportunities. The two of them decided to become business partners.

When Doyoung heard about Jaehyun’s task, he laughed out loud.

“You have to write a story about me?” Doyoung asked, his voice bright with laughter. Jaehyun smacked his arm.

“I told you not to laugh at me!” He whined.

Doyoung just smiled fondly, and pinched his reddening cheeks. “Aigoo Jaehyun-ah, you really act like a baby.”

Jaehyun huffed. ‘I’m only a year younger than you!”

It was to Doyoung’s utmost delight when he found out that Jaehyun was one year younger than Jaehyun. It meant that Doyoung could dote on him as much as possible.

Doyoung smirked at him. “Still a baby in my eyes.” As he patted Jaehyun’s face gently, Jaehyun could only pout. Still, the sight of Doyoung acting so carefree around him warmed his heart, so Jaehyun could not bear to protest any further. He was glad that Doyoung had finally warmed up to him.

Jaehyun also finally got to visit Doyoung’s apartment, where he met Doyoung’s younger brother, Jeno. Jeno, who was like a mini-version of his older brother, evoked the feeling of brotherly love that Jaehyun never felt before, not even for his own brothers back home. His happy eye smiles, his tinkling laughter that rang bright and clear and his uncanny resemblance to a Samoyed puppy was a welcome addition to Jaehyun’s life.

Despite the two brothers’ obviously loving relationship, it was apparent that their family were unconventional.

It was at the back of a convenience stall at midnight while Doyoung and Jaehyun were snacking on ramen noodles when Doyoung laid out his past, raw and bare for Jaehyun. With a quickening breath and trembling hands, Doyoung explained how his parents had passed away in a car accident two years after Jeno was born, forcing him to be the parent for his baby brother.

Jaehyun listened with an aching heart and _oh_ , how he wished he could make the worry lines on Doyoung’s forehead disappear into thin air, just like how Doyoung could make the rain disappear without leaving a single raindrop. Some careful prodding on Jaehyun’s part finally allowed Doyoung’s walls to crumble down at the immense relief of finally being able to tell someone. The burden of needing to be a parent figure for Jeno when he was still a child himself and the mental toll it took on him was evidently too much for Doyoung to carry alone, and Jaehyun was glad to be able to lift the burden even a little. As Jaehyun’s sleeve became soaked with Doyoung’s silent tears, Jaehyun realized that the best he could do was to help Doyoung out, no matter what. And that was exactly what he planned to do.

Together with Jeno, Doyoung and Jaehyun formed a business in order to make a profit out of Doyoung’s rain-stopping abilities. Together, they created a website where people could “order” a bout of sunny weather at the price of 3000 won. Their business soon proved to be a booming success when requests from all walks of life came streaming in. From the innocent young children who wanted the rain to stop for their Sport’s Day festival to the hopeful couple who wanted a bright and sunny day for their wedding day, Doyoung’s smile only grew brighter and brighter as he was able to help people achieve small happiness with his abilities. As their customers ranged from small companies to large corporations, Doyoung, Jaehyun and Jeno worked hard to fulfil every order.

When Johnny heard of Jaehyun’s mini “business” with Doyoung and the progress he made writing the article, he gave him a firm pat on the bag.

“See, kid, you’re not that useless after all!” Johnny said a little too excitedly, and Jaehyun rolled his eyes, albeit playfully. Spending his work days delivering extravagant coffee orders to Johnny and writing small, unimportantly articles were finally behind him now.

They were racking up money too. They halved it; Doyoung used the money to better his apartment and buy higher quality food, and Jaehyun used the money to only buy himself some decent clothes, and gave the money to Doyoung, despite his objections.

“Jaehyun! You can’t just do that! You need the money too!” Doyoung had protested vehemently, thrusting the bills back to Jaehyun. Jaehyun just grinned at him, and placed the money gently into Doyoung’s shaking hands. He shook his head lightly.

Doyoung stared at him with trembling lips and before Jaehyun knew it, Doyoung had jumped straight into his arms. As Doyoung sobbed into Jaehyun’s shoulder uncontrollably, Jaehyun just hummed a soft tune, carding his fingers through Doyoung’s hair gently.

If Doyoung was happy, he was happy too.

Out of all the visits they did, it was the visit to an old woman’s house that stuck to Jaehyun’s mind. The old woman had asked for their services so that she could have a perfect day on the death anniversary of her last husband. She had wanted a sunny day for her to pay her respects at his grave.

The old woman had offered them a cup of tea each. With Doyoung, Jeno and Jaehyun gathered around a table, the old woman told them a story about a world above the clouds that used to exist a long time ago.

“A long time ago, during the ancient times of Japan, there was a maiden, similar to you, my boy, for every village”, the old lady said, glancing at Doyoung. “The weather maiden was the thread that connected the sky to the earth, a special person who can take people’s wishes and deliver them to the sky.”

“Everyone loved their weather maiden.” Doyoung gave her a tight-lipped smile and nodded respectfully.

“After all, the weather changes on a whim, regardless of people’s wishes.” The old lady mused. Jaehyun thought of the endless rainy days, and he wanted to laugh at the truth in her words.

Jaehyun thought of the rainy days that didn’t seem to stop, and the forever-forming puddles of water as the rain fell continuously.

“However, messing with nature always has a cost.” The old lady warned. “A tragic fate awaits the weather maiden.”

At her ominous words, the room became quiet. Jeno gasped. Jaehyun’s heart dropped. _What?_

Peering from the edge of his tea cup, Jaehyun snuck a worried glance at Doyoung. He saw a glint of _something_ in Doyoung’s eyes.

After that visit, Jaehyun noticed that Doyoung had gone uncharacteristically quiet and his hand was ghost-white from gripping Jeno's hand. Jaehyun thought of their conversation with the old lady just now, and wondered if the story had anything to do with Doyoung’s weather-controlling abilities. _Was it really a myth? How much of that was actually real?_

Was Doyoung the connection between the earth and the sky?

And most importantly, _what would happen to Doyoung?_

-

Mythical or not, slowly but surely, their business was becoming bigger and bigger.

Due to their increasing success, they even got news coverage from a popular news channel, Dispatch. As Doyoung worked his magic above one of Seoul’s tallest skyscrapers, a TV channels’ giant camera captured his clasped hands and blissful expression.

“Go, hyung!” Jeno cheered, waving his small fists in the air. Jaehyun stood at the side with his arms crossed, and smiled at the sight before him.

As Doyoung worked his magic and yet another weather miracle occurred, fireworks erupted across the beautiful night sky. With the cheers of the throngs of people below resonated across the place, Doyoung turned around to face Jeno and Jaehyun, beaming in delight.

“Being the 100% Sunshine Boy sure is more fun than I expected!” He exclaimed, and hugged Jeno in glee.

Jaehyun smiled.

It seemed like the two brothers were finally enjoying their life, and for that, Jaehyun was happy.

-

As Doyoung’s 18th birthday drew nearer, Jaehyun mulled over what to give him as a birthday gift. One day when Jaehyun was out by himself while Doyoung and Jeno were at their apartment, he spotted a mini jewellery shop at the end of the street. He eyed the multitude of jewellery sitting on the display shelf, and decided to buy a promise ring for Doyoung.

Would it be too cliche? Jaehyun was worried. He wanted to give Doyoung the best birthday gift possible, and he hoped that a ring would be fit.

“For your special someone?” The shop assistant wriggled her eyebrows at him as she carefully packed Jaehyun’s chosen ring into a box.

“Uhhhh, something like that,” Jaehyun stuttered out with a blush, before shoving the ring box in his pocket. With a quick bow, he left the shop hurriedly.

 _Phew, that was an experience,_ Jaehyun wiped off the sweat clinging on his brow. _Wow Jung Jaehyun, you’re sweating just from buying a damn birthday gift!_ He marveled. _You go, Jaehyun!_

-

Rain fell. Doyoung and Jaehyun strolled down the street casually, the both of them holding bags of food in their hands. The both of them were out buying food from the convenience store with Jeno at home. A comfortable silence blanketed the both of them, amidst the pattering of raindrops on the ground.

As Doyoung looked as carefree as ever, Jaehyun was moments away from having a mental breakdown. _When should I give the ring to Doyoung? What if he thinks I'm proposing to him? What if he doesn’t like my gift?_ Jaehyun fretted while swinging his plastic bags to and fro. The sound of the rain splattering on the ground loudly only ceased to add onto the increasing pressure Jaehyun felt.

Just as Jaehyun had summoned up enough courage to pull the ring out of his pocket, a clap of thunder shook the place. Jaehyun gave a shout of surprise, but quickly shut up. _That was embarrassing._

A violent gust of wind whipped past him, and Jaehyun whirled around in shock. _Since when has the weather become so violent?_ He wondered.

The falling sheets of rain blurred Jaehyun’s vision, and he couldn’t see Doyoung anywhere beside him.

“Doyoung! Are you alright?” Jaehyun shouted so that he could be heard under the roaring of wind and the booming of thunder.

“Doyoung!”

Other than the still-strong gusts of wind and the loud splattering of the rain on the asphalt, there was no response from Doyoung.

Another violent gust of wind blew past Jaehyun and he squatted down, bracing. He put his hands around his ears to block out the, frankly quite terrifying, sounds of nature. _Is this how it sounds when Mother Nature is angry?_ He wondered. Immediately after, he wanted to slap himself. Trust Jaehyun to be thinking of stupid things during this kind of scenarios.

“Doyoung! Where are you?” He yelled again. There was still no response from Doyoung, and Jaehyun felt himself start to panic.

The rain only got heavier. When Jaehyun was finally able to open his eyes without feeling like the rain and wind was going to drill his eyes shut, he looked up and almost had a heart attack.

There was Doyoung, floating in the air, and Jaehyun stood there in shock. _Was that really Doyoung? How the heck is he up there?_

Jaehyun stared at Doyoung for a couple of seconds. Doyoung looked ethereal. _Almost like an angel,_ he thought, a little sidetracked from the problem at hand. As the rain fell all around them, Doyoung did not look the least bit wet. On the other hand, Jaehyun was soaking wet. He could feel his wet socks freezing his feet uncomfortably.

“Doyoung!” Jaehyun shouted again, cupping his hands around his mouth. “What are you doing up there?” Like Jaehyun expected, Doyoung did not respond, and remained there, floating. Jaehyun squinted through the blur of the rain, and was amazed. It looked almost as if the rain parted, just for the sunshine boy.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning burst through the air and Jaehyun closed his eyes instinctively. The sudden clap of thunder rang in his ears.

For a moment, it seemed as if weather and time had stopped —— the wind had stopped howling, the thunder had stopped crashing and the rain had stopped falling. Magically, the weather cleared and sunlight streamed down.

When Jaehyun finally opened his eyes again, Doyoung was on his knees in front of him, clutching at his arms. Jaehyun’s heart dropped to his stomach.

He lurched forward and dropped to his knees beside Doyoung.

“Doyoung! Are you alright? What the heck just happened?” Jaehyun asked, and fussed over Doyoung to make sure he was alright.

Jaehyun gasped.

The sight of Doyoung’s body shocked him to the core.

Part of Doyoung’s arms and hands were as transparent as the rain, and seemed to glisten under the sunlight.

Jaehyun clutched Doyoung’s arms in panic. “What is this? How did this happen?” His heart clenched when he felt Doyoung tremble in his arms. Jaehyun gripped Doyoung’s arms tightly, and he felt slightly nauseous when he realised that he could see his own fingers under Doyoung’s arms through his now-transparent skin. “Tell me!” He demanded.

“It’s part of the burden that comes along with my rain-stopping abilities.” Doyoung finally whispered, and Jaehyun’s stomach dropped.

“So? What does that mean?” Jaehyun hoped the answer was not what he thought it would be.

“I’m not very sure, but I think it means that if I continue to use my abilities to stop the rain, something would happen to me.” Doyoung glanced up to look at Jaehyun, and that was when Jaehyun finally saw the true fear in Doyoung’s eyes.

_(“Messing with nature always has its cost._

_A tragic fate awaits the weather maiden.”)_

Doyoung was afraid, and Jaehyun was, sure as hell, afraid too.

-

_(“I think I know when I became the Sunshine Boy,” Doyoung said. Jaehyun listened in silence._

_“That day last year, I was in the hospital. “ Doyoung smiled at Jaehyun; his eyes screamed of heartache. “I prayed for one last walk under the sunshine with my mother.”_

_“It looked like a pool of light,” Doyoung recounted. “Praying with all my might, I crossed the torii gate.”_

_Jaehyun had a sinking feeling that he knew what came next._

_“When I came to, I was lying on the roof floor.”_

_Doyoung looked at Jaehyun with brimming eyes._

_“And the sky was clear.” Doyoung’s mouth curved into a smile. “That was probably when I became connected to the sky.”_

_Connected to the sky?_

_Jaehyun’s heart pounded in his chest._

_What does that mean?)_

_”_

The two of them headed back to Doyoung’s apartment in relative silence, the air between them heavy with the occurrence of things that had just happened. When they reached Doyoung’s apartment, Jeno must have caught on to the serious atmosphere between them because he tried to lighten the atmosphere by cracking some jokes, and Jaehyun was forever grateful for the godsend that was Jeno Kim.

 _Trust Jeno to know exactly what to do._ Jaehyun smiled fondly as Doyoung broke out in wobbly laughter at one of Jeno’s (albeit lame) jokes.

When Jaehyun and Doyoung were drying off, a knock on the door broke the silent air. Jaehyun and Doyoung looked at each other in mutual fear. _Why would there be anyone visiting Doyoung and Jeno?_ As far as Jaehyun was sure of, there were no other living relatives that would come to find them.

“Go to the study room with Jeno,” Doyoung mouthed at Jaehyun. “I’ll go answer the door.”

Jaehyun nodded, and Doyoung went to check who the stranger was through the door hole. Doyoung paled immediately, and turned to Jaehyun. Judging by the unadulterated fear in Doyoung’s eyes, Jaehyun had a sinking feeling that he knew who their intruder was.

 _Police,_ Doyoung had mouthed frantically, and Jaehyun darted to the study room with a confused Jeno in tow.

“What’s wrong, Jaehyun-hyung?” Jeno whispered as he stared at Jaehyun with wide eyes and pouty lips, and Jaehyun felt like his heart was crushed.

“Nothing’s wrong, Jeno-yah, we’re just playing hide and seek. Doyoung-hyung’s the seeker, so you need to be extra quiet okay?” Jaehyun smiled at Jeno, and his heart ached. The oh-so-gullible Jeno mimed zipping his mouth, and nodded his head vigorously.

“Hyung is going to check if Doyoung-hyung’s coming, hyung can trust Jeno to stay here and be quiet right?” Jaehyun poked Jeno’s stomach and Jeno giggled softly, nodding again.

“Good.” Jaehyun ruffled Jeno’s hair gently, and patted his head again for good measure.

With a quiet sigh of relief, Jaehyun peeked from the study room door to the entrance. The sight of Doyoung speaking to two police officers sent a shiver down his spine.

The two officers looked as if they were showing Doyoung a picture, and Jaehyun’s blood chilled when he realised that it was _him_. It was _Jaehyun_ in that picture. He remembered that it was the last individual picture taken of him in high school, before he ran away to Seoul.

And it looked like the police were asking Doyoung if he knew where Jaehyun was.

Blood thundered in his ears as Jaehyun waited for Doyoung’s response. In a brief moment of fear, Jaehyun wondered if Doyoung would spill. _What if Doyoung told the police that I was here?_

Jaehyun felt a wave of shame wash over him when he saw Doyoung shake his head at the police’s questions. Who did he think Doyoung was? A snitch? Jaehyun felt dull shame creep up onto him.

After a while, Jaehyun saw Doyoung close the door. He pulled Jeno out of a room with a small “Jeno-yah, looks like Doyoung-hyung couldn’t find us!” and walked to the living room where Doyoung was currently sitting on the sofa with his head in his arms.

“Hyung! Why couldn’t you find us! We were in the study room!” Jeno pouted, and he jumped into Doyoung’s arms. Doyoung gave him a tight-lipped smile and ruffled his hair gently.

“Jeno-yah, it’s already 9 o’ clock! It’s your bedtime now, let’s get you into bed.”

Doyoung glanced at Jaehyun; the weight of his stare was heavy with emotion, and Jaehyun gave him a subtle nod. Both of them had a mutual agreement: _Not in front of Jeno._

“Good night Jaehyun-hyung!”

When Jeno gave Jaehyun that adorable eye smile of his, Jaehyun thought maybe, _just maybe,_ everything was going to be alright.

Jaehyun’s heart ached terribly.

It was only when Doyoung had tucked Jeno safely into bed and he was silently snoring away when he sat down next to Jaehyun on the sofa with a heavy sigh.

They sat on the sofa in silence for a while, with Jaehyun rubbing Doyoung’s back slowly and Doyoung taking deep breaths.

“You okay?” He whispered, and Doyoung heaved a loaded sigh.

There were another few moments of tense silence before Doyoung’s dam of feelings finally broke down, and he crumbled right in front of Jaehyun.

“They’re going to separate us,” Doyoung finally whispered, and Jaehyun’s heart drops to his feet.

“What do you mean?”

All it took was a wide-eyed and teary glance from Doyoung for Jaehyun to gather him into his arms, hushing his quiet sobs. “There, there. Don’t cry, please,” Jaehyun quietly begged as Doyoung gripped the back of his shirt tightly. It was so jarring to see the sunshine boy being reduced to a mess of tears when he was usually so bright and cheerful and dripping with warmth. And it was so _unfair_ , Jaehyun thought angrily. Doyoung gave the sun and happiness to others _(willingly!)_ , but he only ever received thunderstorms and pain. Jaehyun wanted to scream. The universe was one hell of an asshole, Jaehyun thought bitterly.

Through trembling lips and wet cheeks, Doyoung explained that the police had said that Doyoung and Jeno were too young to be living together without any adult supervision, and had to be put into coaster care.

Doyoung paused and glanced at Jaehyun tearfully. Jaehyun rubbed reassuring circles onto Doyoung’s back. _Go on,_ he mouthed encouragingly.

Doyoung went on by saying that with the promise that the police would return tomorrow with social workers, and he and Jeno would have to be separated once they got into foster care.

Jaehyun felt a sharp pang of pain to his heart. He knew that this was not something he could just _do_ to solve the problem, and Jaehyun hated it. He hated feeling useless. But there was nothing Jaehyun could do to help the Kim brothers.

-

The feeling of helplessness only increased tenfold when he met with Johnny. Johnny had explained to him that the police came to his office as well to look for him, and his parents were trying to reach out to him.

Johnny handed Jaehyun all his owed salary in full and gave him an apologetic smile.

“Sorry kid, I can’t help you anymore. You should go home.” Johnny patted his back comfortingly and apologised. “Everything would go back to normal if you just go home.”

Jaehyun shrugged his hand off bitterly. Clutching the money in his hands, Jaehyun left, with tears welling up in his eyes. Jaehyun wanted to blame Johnny for firing him just because the police got involved, but he just couldn’t. The job was only supposed to be temporary, he supposed. Furthermore, if the police found out that Johnny had employed Jaehyun and hid it from them, Johnny would only get into deep trouble. It seemed as if there was nothing Johnny could do to help Jaehyun anymore, and Jaehyun really couldn’t bear to blame him.

What did he do for things to suddenly start going downhill? Jaehyun wondered as he trudged back to Doyoung’s apartment. He wiped his tears with the back of hand, and turned to glare at the sky.

“FUCK YOU!” He yelled.

The birds on the trees flew away at his loud shout. Jaehyun wanted to scream some more. He resorted to mumbling a string of colourful profanities under his breath.

Jaehyun kicked at a stone angrily, and the stone rolled towards a puddle of water.

That’s right, it rained just now, Jaehyun thought.

When Jaehyun finally reached Doyoung’s apartment, he broke the news to him. Sharing a fearful glance, the two of them reached a decision. Packing what little belongings they had in three bags, Doyoung and Jaehyun prepared themselves to hit the streets.

When the two of them informed Jeno of their plans, the child just nodded, albeit a little fearfully. “As long as I get to be together with hyung, right?” He held Doyoung’s hand tightly, and gave him a wobbly smile.

Doyoung squatted down and cupped his face tenderly. “Yes baby, hyung’s gonna be by your side no matter what, okay? Trust hyung.”

Jeno nodded.

Hearing the two brother’s exchange of words, Jaehyun’s heart broke a little. He now understood how desperate Doyoung was to keep them together. If they were separated now, Jeno would be _devastated_. Jaehyun clenched his fists tightly. None of them deserved this. It was just so _unfair_ , he thought.

But the universe sure had a twisted sense of humour, huh?

-

When Jaehyun, Doyoung and Jeno hit the streets, one of Seoul’s worst typhoons hit them too. As the heavy rivulets of rain beat onto them mercilessly, Doyoung and Jaehyun desperately searched for a hospital to spend the night while Jeno clung onto their hands tightly.

The news blared all over the billboards.

_(“Heavy rain all over Seoul. It looks like the rain will not stop anytime soon. “_

_“Several flights were cancelled at Incheon International Airport due to the heavy thunderstorm.”_

_“Over six inches of rain in an hour.”_

_“This abnormal weather will continue for a few weeks. This weather is unprecedented and extremely dangerous. You are strongly advised to stay at home.”)_

Jaehyun stared at the falling raindrops. _Just their luck,_ he thought bitterly.

After yet another hostel turned them away at the sight of them, ratty and dirty children, Jeno collapsed at the side of the streets, hungry, thirsty and exhausted.

“Jeno!” Doyoung dropped to his knees beside Jeno, and coaxed him to his feet gently. While Doyoung stroked Jeno’s back carefully, Jaehyun helped him sip on some water and gave him a few biscuits to eat.

“Sorry hyungs,” Jeno pouted as he held their worried gazes.

Jaehyun’s heart dropped.

“Jeno-yah, you did nothing wrong, don’t apologise,” Jaehyun pinched Jeno’s cheeks, and squeezed his small hand. Jaehyun was determined to find them a place for the night; he couldn’t bear for Jeno and Doyoung to suffer much longer.

Just when the three of them reached the end of the road, they were spotted by the police making their way towards

them. “Crap, Doyoung, the police!” Jaehyun whisper-yelled, and nudged his shoulder urgently.

“I know, they already spotted us, we can’t avoid them now,” Doyoung whispered back. Jaehyun gulped. “Hey you kids!” One of the policemen approached them carefully, holding up the graduation picture of Jaehyun and showing it to them.

Jaehyun glanced sideways and saw Doyoung’s face pale.

“Aren’t you Jung Jaehyun?” The policemen squinted at Jaehyun’s face carefully, and soon realisation dawned onto his face.

“You are him!” The policeman gasped slightly, and muttered something into his walkie-talkie.

Jaehyun gripped the straps of his backpack a little tighter, and gulped nervously. _Now what? What are they going to do with me?_

“Jung Jaehyun, I’m afraid you have to come with us now. Your parents filed a missing person report and are asking you to go back home.” The policeman nodded to his companions and the other two policemen surged forward to grab Jaehyun by both his arms.

Jaehyun looked towards Doyoung, his eyes wide with alarm. _What should we do?_ He mouthed at Doyoung.

Behind Doyoung, Jeno whimpered, and that was when something in Jaehyun stirred.

He began struggling against the policemen, twisting and turning and ducking.

“Let me go!” He yelled. “I don’t wanna go back to my parents!” The policemen holding him struggled to keep him still.

“Hyung!” Jeno yelled, and he rushed forward to save his hyung. Doyoung held him back and pushed Jeno behind him, his eyes wide with fear.

“Hey boy, if you don’t stop moving we’re going to have to tase you,” One of the policemen said through gritted teeth. Jaehyun ignored him.

GO! He mouthed as he whipped around to face Doyoung and Jeno. Doyoung shook his head shakily.

He took a step forward. Jaehyun stared at him in horror, shaking his head. 

“What are you doing, Doyoung? Stay back!” He glared at Doyoung, wriggling to face him to try and get his point across.

Doyoung gave Jaehyun a hard stare. Jaehyun had a bad feeling about this.

“Kid, let’s go!” The two policemen shoved Jaehyun towards the police car, and Jaehyun stumbled forward unsteadily.

That was when Doyoung saw red. He clasped his fingers in a prayer.

“Please!” He yelled.

Jaehyun whirled around in shock. _NO!_ His mind screamed.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning lit up the place, and Jaehyun felt as if he was momentarily blinded.

“BANG!”

The bolt of lightning had hit a parked truck, and the truck had caught on fire. Pieces of rubble were flying everywhere and screams of shock echoed across the place, and Jaehyun ducked to avoid a piece of wood, narrowly missing his head by inches.

The policemen let out loud shouts, and the hands on Jaehyun loosened. “What’s happening?” They yelled as they stared at the ablaze truck in horror. Sires wailed in the distance. “That’s dangerous!”

Taking advantage of the distraction, Jaehyun wriggled out of their grasp and ran towards Doyoung and Jeno.

Jaehyun shook a trembling Doyoung’s shoulders, and took a shaking Jeno’s hand hurriedly. “Move!” He yelled, tugging the two brothers along. “We need to go, _now_!”

That snapped Doyoung and Jeno out of their daze. Fuelled by fear and desperation, the three of them took off to the streets, leaving behind the chaos they had caused.

”

Doyoung, Jeno and Jaehyun raced down the streets, the scenery of buildings and trees becoming blurrier as they ran faster and faster to escape the police. As the screams of passer-bys and the police got fainter and fainter, Jaehyun led them to a nearby hotel.

Doyoung and Jeno heaved, exhausted from all the running while Jaehyun went to book a room. Luckily enough for them, they had managed to rent a room for one day. Jaehyun handed the money (a whopping 300000 won!) over with a little hesitance, but the thought of finally having quality rest and food outweighed the expense of their stay.

When Doyoung, Jeno and Jaehyun finally reached their room, they collapsed on the king-sized bed in the bedroom tiredly.

Jaehyun gazed at the TV blankly and tried to process everything that had happened.

“Wow hyung, is this all for us?” Jeno’s sudden yell of excitement from the living room caught Jaehyun’s attention, and he turned to look at Jeno, who was rummaging through the mini-fridge.

Jeno took out a can of coke from the fridge, and turned to beam at Jaehyun.

Jaehyun nodded his head. “Yes, Jeno, that’s all for us to have.”

As Jeno cheered quietly and began stuffing his face with food from the mini-fridge, Jaehyun turned to look at Doyoung, who had his face planted on the bed sheets.

“Hey, you alright?” He nudged his shoulder gently.

Doyoung looked up, and Jaehyun was alarmed to see the tears in his eyes.

“Hey, don’t cry! What’s wrong?” Jaehyun hushed Doyoung gently and wiped the tear that managed to roll down his cheeks.

Doyoung peered at him with guilt-filled eyes, and clasped their fingers together. “I summoned that lightning bolt….. I hurt people.” His lips trembled, and Jaehyun’s heart tightened in his chest.

Jaehyun had a slight suspicion that Doyoung was the one who caused that, but hearing it come out of Doyoung’s mouth sounded surreal.

Jaehyun tried not to express the shock on his face, and instead rubbed soothing circles onto Doyoung’s thumb. “You didn’t have a choice,” He said, but his reassuring words did not reduce the guilt and remorse in Doyoung’s face.

Wanting so desperately for Doyoung to wipe that kicked-puppy look off his face, Jaehyun bumped shoulders with him playfully, and said, “Don’t be so down! We need to seize this opportunity and relax! Especially since we’re in this fancy ass hotel room. We only have one day here.”

Hearing him, Doyoung smiled and nodded.

“Doyoung-hyung and Jaehyun-hyung, come and eat!” Jeno popped his head to look into the bedroom, and pointed a thumb to the living room.

Doyoung smiled at Jaehyun. Bless the kid’s intuition again because Jeno thankfully did not point out the obvious tear tracks on Doyoung’s cheeks.

Finally being able to relax, the three of them took a nice, long bubble bath and raided the mini-fridge.

They stuffed themselves with instant ramen and bibimbap, and Jaehyun was brimming in happiness.

When was the last time he had eaten a meal with such happiness and excitement?

Much to Jeno’s delight, Jaehyun and Doyoung even did a sing-off with the karaoke machine provided. Together, they sang and laughed their heads off.

At that moment, Jaehyun felt so much warmth in his chest. Finally,some happiness had decided to come their way.

 _Dear God,_ he thought. _I beg you. This is more than enough. We don’t need anything else. We’ll manage somehow._

Jaehyun burst into laughter as Jeno threw a pillow at Doyoung’s face.

_So please, don’t give us anything more and don’t take anything more from us._

Jaehyun watched with a smile on his face as Doyoung relented with another pillow thrown at Jeno.

_Dear God, I beg you. Let us be together like this, forever._

_’’_

After a while, Jeno finally succumbed to exhaustion and was soon knocked out on the bed. His soft snores were like a soothing lullaby and seemed to soften the atmosphere between the other two boys.

Meanwhile, Doyoung and Jaehyun sat next to each other on the bed, enveloped by comfortable silence. They looked at each other bashfully, and Jaehyun remembered the ring he was supposed to give to Doyoung.

Jaehyun cleared his throat. Doyoung looked at him curiously, and tilted his head.

Jaehyun gathered up what courage he had and took out the ring box from his pocket, and nudged it towards Doyoung.

“Happy 18th birthday.”

Doyoung looked at the ring inside the box, and looked up to face Jaehyun, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears.

“Do you like it?” Jaehyun whispered.

Doyoung stared at him incredulously, and before Jaehyun knew it, Doyoung had crashed right into his arms.

“Thank you,” Doyoung whispered, his two words holding the weight of so many untold emotions.

Jaehyun smiled softly, and ruffled his hair gently.

“That’s the first birthday gift I ever received,” Doyoung muttered into Jaehyun’s chest.

With a final pat of his head, Doyoung got off Jaehyun’s lap and leaned against the headboards. He looked at Jaehyun, and gulped.

“Hey, Jaehyun.”

“There’s actually something I need to ask you....” He trailed off, glancing up to look at Jaehyun anxiously. Doyoung bit his lips nervously, and Jaehyun’s heart dropped.

“What?” He choked out.

Doyoung looked down to his lap, and to his hand, the ring Jaehyun had just given him glinting in the light.

“Would you like this rain to stop?”

Jaehyun looked at Doyoung, a little confused. “Yeah.”

The bedside lamp flickered on and off. Doyoung flopped onto the sheets. He looked up to the ceiling, and sighed.

“I was chosen to be a sacrifice victim.” He finally said. Jaehyun’s heart froze in his chest.

“What?”

“I know about the sunshine boy’s fate,” Doyoung smiled at Jaehyun ruefully. “He gets sacrificed and disappears, then the weather goes back to normal.”

Outside, the sound of the splattering of the rain on the ground only seemed to get louder and louder. But it wasn’t loud enough to drown out the pounding of Jaehyun’s heart.

Jaehyun recalled the old lady’s words, and a dull feeling of dread creeped up onto him.

“Come on,” He forced out. “They’re always telling weird ass stories. It’s not like people disappear….”

Jaehyun’s words were cut off by the rustling of cloth. When he looked up, Doyoung had slipped off part of the robe he was wearing. Jaehyun felt slightly nauseous.

Half of Doyoung’s shoulder had already gone transparent, similar to his arms and hands.

It finally dawned upon Jaehyun that everything Doyoung had said was all true. He tried to stop himself, but he couldn’t help it as a fresh well of tears poured down his cheeks. _No, that can’t be._

“The more I pray for sunshine, the more my body becomes transparent.” Doyoung looked down at his legs, which were in the same condition as the rest of his body, and smiled sadly. “I’m sure that, if I die this way, the usual summer would come back.”

Fresh tears rolled down Jaehyun’s cheeks continuously, and he rubbed his eyes fiercely. _No, no…. …_ He thought of the never-ending rain and the sun that never came out, and he thought of Doyoung, whose bright smile never seemed to fade. Jaehyun shook his head resolutely.

“I don’t care!” Jaehyun rubbed his fists against his eyes, and glared at Doyoung.

Doyoung gave him a small smile. “Take care of Jeno for me, okay?”

“Stop that!” Jaehyun shut down so Doyoung quickly that Doyoung jumped a little in shock.

“No way, you’re not going anywhere!” Jaehyun turned to face Doyoung and held his gaze stubbornly.

“We’ll live together, the three of us,” He promised.

“Jaehyun… …” Doyoung trailed off and shook his head a little.

 _Stop it! Doyoung, why are you being so pessimistic?_ Jaehyun thought frustratedly 

“Doyoung, let's make a promise,” Jaehyun grabbed Doyoung’s hands tightly, and touched the ring on his finger lightly.

“We’ll always be together forever.”

Doyoung stared at the ring on his finger, and then to Jaehyun’s tear-filled eyes, and he squeezed Jaehyuns’s hands gently.

Wordlessly, he gently coaxed Jaehyun to his side and eventually had the younger boy bury his face in his hip. Doyoung unconsciously switched to protector mode as he pressed his lips to a still-sobbing Jaehyun’s head.

Sometime between Doyoung humming a tune softly and brushing Jaehyun’s cheeks with gentle thumbs, Jaehyun’s tears finally stopped falling.

Jaehyun pouted as he stopped crying, rubbing his cheeks clean of tear stains.

As Jaehyun slowly tired himself out from crying, he grasped Doyoung’s hands desperately. “Don’t leave me please… …” Jaehyun whispered, as he finally drifted off to sleep.

Doyoung only stared at him lovingly, endearment clear in his eyes.

That day, Jaehyun dreamed of rain-filled sunny days and of a place at the top of the clouds.

-

_(Jaehyun had a dream._

_He was still on the island, cycling as fast as possible across the rough dirt road._

_He wanted to leave, he wanted to reach the light so desperately… … But he reached a dead end instead._

_Jaehyun wanted to scream out in frustration._

_At that moment, he decided that he wanted to enter that light._

_And at the edge of it, Jaehyun found him.)_

’’

_(Doyoung had a dream._ _The day he met him._

_He really looked like a lost kitten, Doyoung mused._

_But he had found a meaning for his existence._

_Bringing the sunshine to people brought a smile to his face; Doyoung knew that this job was meant, destined for him._

_Doyoung was really glad to meet him._

_So, please don’t cry, Jaehyun-ah, Doyoung prayed.)_

-

_  
  
  
_

Doyoung woke up to a mysterious place surrounded by mist and fog. 

“Where am I?” He wondered aloud. 

Doyoung had a sinking feeling in his chest. He knew, he had been here before. 

Doyoung glanced down to look at the ring on his finger. The occurrences of today felt like they happened so long ago. 

“Jaehyun… …” He whispered. 

A drop of water plopped onto his skin. Ripples formed on his skin, and Doyoung stared in horror.

Doyoung never felt so much dread overwhelm him before. 

The weird translucent fish things swarmed around him, bumping and knocking into him. Strangely however, they seemed to pass right _through_ him. 

Doyoung suppressed a scream. _What was happening to him?_

He looked down onto his hands. 

His ring slipped through his now liquid-like state finger, and Doyoung’s heart almost stopped.

_No, that’s the ring Jaehyun gave him!_

He panicked, and tried to catch the ring with his hands. 

There was nothing he could do. 

Doyoung just stared in helplessness as the ring dropped down, 

_down_ , 

**down.**

_  
  
  
_

-

_  
  
  
_

The next day, Jaehyun woke up to sunlight trickling through the curtains and not to the gentle pattering of raindrops against the window panes. 

That was the first sign that something was amiss. 

Jaehyun yawned lightly and rubbed his eyes to clear his sleep-addled vision, before sitting up straight when he remembered yesterday’s occurrences. 

The warm body of a certain someone was absent, and it’s absence only left a cold, empty space beside Jaehyun. 

_Something’s wrong._

Jaehyun turned to his side with a pounding heart, and sure enough, Doyoung was not there. 

“Doyoung, where are you?” He burst through every door, desperately praying that _maybe,_ Doyoung was just in the bathroom. 

However, it only confirmed his worst fears. 

“Jaehyun-hyung, what’s wrong?” Jeno sat up on the bed sleepily upon hearing the commotion that Jaehyun stirred up at ass o’ clock in the morning. 

“Doyoung disappeared!” Jaehyun panted. 

“What?” Jeno stared at him, his eyes wide with shock. He held Jaehyun’s gaze, and muttered “That can’t be… …”

Jaehyun snapped his head to look at Jeno. “What?”

It felt as if Jeno‘s gaze was piercing through him. His voice was shaky when he said “I had a dream that Doyoung-hyung disappeared into the sky.”

Jaehyun and Jeno stared at each other in horror, and they just knew. 

Doyoung was gone.

 _Gone._

_  
  
  
_

-

_  
  
  
_

“Don’t tell me… …”

A series of harsh knocks on the door shook Jaehyun and Jeno out of their daze. 

“Open up!” 

“Jaehyun-hyung, who — ”

Jeno’s cry of shock was cut off by the door opening, and two policemen rushed in. 

“You’re Jung Jaehyun, aren’t you?” The police inspector scrutinised him carefully while holding up his identification card. 

“You’re a missing person, and suspected of unlawful possession of a weapon.“ The policeman gave Jaehyun a hard stare.

“Come to the police station.” 

Jaehyun stared at him blankly, his whole body trembling as he processed the sudden turn of events. _No, this can’t be happening… …_

“Let me go!”

Jaehyun turned his head at the sudden shout, and saw Jeno struggling against the policewoman. Despite the policewoman’s placating words, Jeno only flailed in her arms wilder, in between shouts of “Stop it!” and “Let me go!”.

Jaehyun watched helplessly as the policewoman scooped Jeno up in her arms and carried him away. Away from Jaehyun. 

“Jaehyun-hyung!” Jeno screamed, before making eye contact with him. His eyes screamed of desperation but there was nothing Jaehyun could do. 

“Jeno-yah!” 

Jaehyun surged towards Jeno but was quickly held down by the policeman on the bed. 

“Don’t struggle,” The policeman advised him. Jaehyun turned around to glare at him, but saw the unmistaken glint of warning in the man’s eyes. That was when Jaehyun stopped, resigned, because he knew his struggle was useless. 

Jaehyun’s heart stuttered in his chest. There was nothing he could do.

”

Jaehyun stepped out into the sun in handcuffs. He stood in knee-deep water, the aftermath of the heavy downpour that had been going on for days. 

The warmth of the sunlight shining on Jaehyun felt like a slap to his face. Looking around, he saw children stomping in the puddles with glee and students soaking in the warmth of the sun. He clenched his fists. Everyone around him looked so happy, except Jaehyun. He wanted to scream to the heavens, that this was just so _unfair._ Doyoung sacrificed himself for this, Jaehyun reminded himself. He would be happy seeing other people’s happiness, he thought bitterly. Of course, _Doyoung_ was always the selfless one. 

Something dropped from the sky, and fell into the water with a small ‘plop’. It seemed to glint under the sunlight. 

Jaehyun squatted down curiously. 

“What are you doing?” The police inspector barked, but Jaehyun ignored him. 

Jaehyun reached into the knee-deep water, only to pick up a ring. _Doyoung’s_ ring, he realised. The ring _he_ had given Doyoung, just yesterday. 

Jaehyun stared at the ring blankly. His hand shook unsteadily.

Reality seemed to hit him like a freight truck. 

“Doyoung!” Jaehyun surged forward in despair. “Tell me it’s not true!” 

Doyoung really _did_ sacrifice himself for the sunshine to come back. 

“Hey!” The policeman rushed to restrain Jaehyun. 

“Doyoung!”

His voice sounded hoarse, even to his own ears.

Jaehyun sank to his knees. 

_Doyoung… ..._

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


The door slammed shut, and Jaehyun was now trapped in the police car. 

Jaehyun rattled the handles of the car insistently, desperate to get out. _I have to find Doyoung._ He cursed under his breath as the door remained, unfortunately, locked. 

“There’s no use, kid,” The policeman commented from the driver’s seat, and Jaehyun glared at him through the rear mirror. 

The policeman shot him an unimpressed stare back. 

Jaehyun huffed in annoyance. _Doyoung had disappeared, he had to find him, why was it so hard for them to understand?_ Jaehyun gripped his hair frustratedly. 

“I’ve got a question,” The policeman started.

“The boy who was with you yesterday is Kim Doyoung right? Do you know where he is now?”

Jaehyun stared at him incredulously. 

“I just told you, didn’t I?” Jaehyun exploded. “The sky cleared because Doyoung offered himself as a sacrifice!” 

It was now the policeman’s turn to stare at him. 

Jaehyun’s hands trembled as he gripped his knees. 

_Why won’t anyone understand?_

Jaehyun thought of sweet, selfless, _beautiful_ Doyoung offering himself in exchange for the rain to stop, and more tears welled up in his eyes. _Doyoung gave his life for all of you!_ Jaehyun wanted to scream. _And yet none of you want to take me seriously!_

“And nobody knows that… … I can’t take it anymore… …” Jaehyun sniffled. 

“This is a pain… …” The policeman sighed. 

“Will we need an expert medical witness?” The other policeman driving questioned. 

Jaehyun glared at them half-heartedly. 

“Hey, I can hear you, you know!” 

As the two policemen pointedly ignored him, Jaehyun tipped his head back against the car seat, and stared out of the window. 

_The sky was so clear… …_

Jaehyun was unnerved. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


“Mr Detective, I’ve got a favour to ask you.” Jaehyun started. 

The policeman let out an annoyed groan. “What?” He gritted out. 

It was the third time Jaehyun had asked him that, and saying that he was annoyed was an understatement. 

“Let me go look for Doyoung, please,” Jaehyun pleaded. “It’s my turn to help him now.”

The policeman stared at him with utter defeat. 

Jaehyun clenched his fists determinedly. “I’ll come back as soon as I find him, I promise!”

One policeman at the side sighed, almost as if to say “Here we go again.. …”

“I’ll listen to you here. Come on.” 

The detective rolled his eyes, and turned his back against Jaehyun quickly, almost as if Jaehyun was just an annoying pest that he could just flick off and get rid of. However, Jaehyun was not one to back down so easily.

“Tell Mr Lee that we’re ready to start the interrogation,” He heard one of the policemen mutter, and Jaehyun felt his blood boil. 

Why was he wasting so much time when he could be out there searching for Doyoung?

Irritation coursed through his veins and sparked a fire of determination in his heart. 

“Move!” Jaehyun pushed through the officers, and dashed forward. Blood pounded in his ears as Jaehyun ran past confused police staff and citizens. 

“Hey! Wait!” Jaehyun heard faint cries of outrage from behind him.

He jumped down flights of stairs and ran along corridors, knocking down everything that was in his way. Potted plants were shoved aside and stacks of files and paper were pushed through as Jaehyun charged through the obstacles in his way like a raging bull. 

Jaehyun was like a tornado —nothing could stop him when it came to Doyoung. 

“Stop! Someone stop him!” The yells of the police only spurred Jaehyun to run faster, faster, _faster_. 

As Jaehyun neared the exit of the police station, a policeman wielding a wooden stick blocked his way. 

“Stop right now!” He yelled. 

Jaehyun’s foot slipped against the wet floor and suddenly, he had slid right between the policeman’s legs. 

Jaehyun’s heart thrummed in his chest erratically. 

_I… … did that?_

As the policeman turned to stare at him in shock, waves of adrenaline pumped through his veins and Jaehyun was determined. 

_He could do this_ , Jaehyun thought. 

Jaehyun ran past baffled passer-bys and obstructed the flow of traffic by weaving through cars and trucks, the knee-deep water splattering all around him. 

As Jaehyun turned his head, he could vaguely make out the police chasing after him. 

He turned the corner, and spotted an unused bicycle. He tugged at it desperately, but it was unfortunately, chained to the electric pole. 

“Damn it!” Jaehyun yelled, and he rattled the handles of the bicycle uselessly. 

He turned his head, and spotted the police inspector dashing towards him. 

_Goddamnit,_ he cursed under his breath. 

Jaehyun charged down the street. He couldn’t let himself be caught now. 

“Jaehyun!” 

Suddenly, the shout of his name came from behind me. 

As Jaehyun continued running, he shifted his head slightly, and made eye contact with a man on a motorcycle, his bright-red hair flapping wildly in the wind. The grin he sported on his face was bright and blinding, and it confused Jaehyun. 

“Who are you?” He shouted as his feet pounded against the pavement. 

“Nakamoto Yuta!” The man flashed him a dazzling grin and somehow, Jaehyun knew that he could trust him. 

“What are you doing!” The man shouted back, his motorcycle rumbling as he rode. 

“I’m going to find Doyoung, do you know him?

Jaehyun eyed him through panting breaths, and strangely, a hint of recognition and understanding flashed across the man, Yuta’s, eyes. 

“Get on!” 

Jaehyun stared at him in shock. 

Yuta gestured at him with his head impatiently. “Hurry! We don’t have all day!”

Jaehyun decided to take a leap of faith. 

With a big jump, he landed behind Yuta on the motorcycle and the two of them accelerated. 

“Johnny told me,” Yuta explained through the rustling of the wind. 

“He told me about you and Doyoung and a kid called Jeno, and how you needed help. I owe him a favour.”

Jaehyun’s head snapped up. 

“Do you know where Jeno is?” Jaehyun dared to ask. Since Yuta knew so much about his predicament, he must know about Jeno. 

“At the Child Consultation Centre.”

Jaehyun’s heart settled in his chest. To the best of his knowledge, Jeno was safe, and that was more than enough for him.

At that moment, his heart softened too. Under different circumstances, he would have cooed at Johnny’s tsundere way of expressing concern. _Who knew Johnny was such a softie at heart,_ Jaehyun smiled. 

Sirens echoed behind them. 

_Shit._

Jaehyun turned his head, and sure enough, he caught sight of police cars tailing them. 

“Yuta, the police!” He warned. 

Yuta pulled down his goggles, and revved up the engine. 

“Cool, looks like we’re outlaws now!” Yuta yelled, and a maniac grin stretched across his face. 

Jaehyun grinned at that, his dimples flashing. 

“Let’s go!”

  
  
  


-

Soon, the two of them reached a section of the road where the water had gone up to waist-level. 

“Oh no,” Yuta gasped, eyeing the flooded road. 

Jaehyun looked at him nervously. What were they going to do?

His answer came sooner than expected when Yuta turned around and flashed him a bright smile.

“We’re jumping in!” He announced gleefully. Jaehyun’s eyes widened in shock. 

“Wha—”

Yuta revved up the engine, and Jaehyun gripped the sides of the motorcycle as they speeded straight towards the water. His fingers turned ghost-white as Jaehyun clung onto the motorcycle with all his might — he wasn’t prepared to be flung out of the vehicle anytime soon. 

Before he knew it, they had cruised headlong into the water.

Jaehyun almost screamed when water splashed all around them, however, Yuta looked unfazed. 

Their motorcycle bumped a few times on the surface of the water before completely skidding to a halt. 

Jaehyun looked around in horror when the two of them started sinking in the flooded waters. 

Yuta cursed, and looked at Jaehyun in frustration. “I can’t go any further.”

Instead, Yuta shoved Jaehyun lightly.

“ _GO!”_

Jaehyun startled at Yuta’s shout. Seeing Yuta’s fiery gaze of determination, Jaehyun felt a wave of energy surge through him, and his legs propelled forward. 

He climbed up the side of a lorry, and jumped straight onto the fence. “Thank you, Yuta!” Jaehyun threw Yuta a quick thumbs up, before jumping over the fence. 

The barbed wire at the top of the fence cut him at various places but Jaehyun barely felt the pain, fuelled by pure adrenaline and drive. 

“Jung Jaehyun! Run!” He heard Yuta yell. 

So Jaehyun ran, his legs aching and sweat sticking to the back of his neck uncomfortably. As he stumbled over rubble on the train tracks, Jaehyun ran, the sweat on his brows trickling down his face. 

Jaehyun’s mind was in a mess; a mantra of _Doyoung, Doyoung, Doyoung_ was on loop in his head. 

When he tilted his head up, he saw the big mass of clouds that looked _so_ familiar. 

“Are you there?” Jaehyun yelled (his efforts were futile).

“Doyoung-hyung, wait for me!” 

  
  


_(“Hey Jaehyun.” Doyoung’s voice was so achingly familiar, it hurt._

_“It’ll clear up now.”_

_And clear up it did, but Jaehyun lost Doyoung in the process.)_

  
  


As the sun shone upon him, the warmth of the sunshine only added onto the pain Jaehyun felt; a bit like tearing open the stitches to a new wound.

  
  


_(“I’m in love with this sunshine boy job.” Doyoung had told him. Jaehyun thought that the bright smile he had on his face put the dazzling fireworks to shame._

_“Thank you, Jaehyun.”)_

  
  


Jaehyun flung his helmet off his head angrily. 

“Someone got onto the tracks!” A few construction workers repairing the train tracks stared at him, baffled, as Jaehyun ran past them like a madman. 

“Hey you! What are you doing? It’s dangerous!”

The shouts of warning from the workers and the snide comments from witnesses all fell deaf to Jaehyun’s ears, as he ran, _ran_ , **ran**. 

“I’m sorry!” A desperate cry ripped through Jaehyun’s lips. 

“I’m sorry Doyoung!” Jaehyun yelled uselessly, as tears he didn't know he was still capable of having rolled down his cheeks. 

It was me who made you do the sunshine boy job, Jaehyun thought. You’ve shouldered all the responsibility! Tell me… … what 

  
  


_(“Hey Jaehyun?” Doyoung had asked him gently._

_“Would you like this rain to stop?”)_

  
  


Jaehyun heaved, panting heavily as he stopped near the entrance of the abandoned building. He glared at the mass of clouds in the sky.

_Doyoung-hyung, wait for me!_

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


Jaehyun dashed inside the abandoned building, and suddenly spotted a dark figure in the corner of the corridor. 

Jaehyun squinted his eyes at it. 

“Who’s there?” He called out. 

His heart pounded in his chest erratically. 

“I was looking for you, Jaehyun.” The tall, dark figure that was Johnny crept out of the shadows and Jaehyun almost had a heart attack. 

“Johnny?” Jaehyun’s eyes almost popped out of his sockets at the sight of his former boss. “Dude, what are you doing here?” He hissed at him. 

Johnny gave him an unimpressed stare. “Do you realise what you’re doing?” 

Jaehyun stared at him for a few seconds, incredulity written all over his features. 

Johnny had sent Yuta to him, Johnny was supposed to be on his side, why was he suddenly saying that now? Jaehyun had never felt so much confusion before. 

“Doyoung disappeared!” Instead, Jaehyun yelled at Johnny. 

When Johnny looked slightly taken aback at Jaehyun’s outburst, Jaehyun couldn’t blame him. Johnny must have been used to Jaehyun’s usually laidback and easygoing nature, so seeing him being so defensive must be a shock to Johnny. 

“It was my fault!” Jaehyun looked at Johnny dead in the eye. 

“The sunshine boy job was _my_ idea!”

Johnny looked at him with his mouth slightly agape. “Jaehyun, you… …”

“It’s my turn to help him now!” Jaehyun burst out. _He just couldn’t understand — Why can’t Johnny get how much Doyoung meant to him and he had to save him?_

Johnny only stared at him, the shock on his face now evident. 

The pounding of footsteps shook Jaehyun out of his stupor. 

“I must go.” Jaehyun turned around and rushed into the room. 

“Wait!” Johnny grabbed his arm. “Where are you —”

“I can go to the sky through there!” Jaehyun cried, pointing upwards at the gaping hole in the building’s ceiling. 

“What?”

Johnny tilted his head up to gaze at the partially-ruined building with incredulity. Sunlight was streaming through the massive hole and into the building. His eyes widened a little when he spotted the red _torii_ gate at the very top of the building. 

Johnny turned to Jaehyun. “Jaehyun, What are you saying?”

“He’s in the sky!”

Jaehyun turned to stare at the hole determinedly. “I’ll use the emergency stairs,” Jaehyun said as he lunged forward. 

“Jaehyun!” Johnny pulled him back. 

“He can’t be up there… …”

Jaehyun ignored him completely; he was almost delirious. “I got to help him!” 

Johnny held his arm firmly. “Get a grip!”

_Slap!_

The force of the slap Johnny gave him must have been large if Jaehyun heard ringing in his ears. The shock at Johnny’s sudden slap outweighed the pain, because Jaehyun barely felt a sting on his face. He was numb from shock. 

There were a few beats of stunned silence, before Johnny sighed. 

“Calm down, Jaehyun,” Johnny told him calmly. “Go back to the police station.” 

Johnny glanced at Jaehyun, and sighed again. “They’ll understand. After all, you’ve done nothing wrong.”

He grabbed Jaehyun’s shoulder and shook him once, twice, three times. “If you keep running away, it’ll be too late, do you understand?”

Jaehyun remained mun. He felt himself shake a little. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll come with you.” Johnny said, probably as a form of consolation but Jaehyun didn’t get the message. “Let’s explain everything together, okay?”

When Johnny turned around and pulled Jaehyun in tow with him, Jaehyun yanked his hand off Johnny forcefully. 

“Let me go!” He yelled, his eyes shaking with anger. 

Johnny looked at him disbelievingly. “Jaehyun-ah, calm down… …”

“No!” When Johnny still did not let go of Jaehyun, Jaehyun bared his teeth and bit down on Johnny’s arm, _hard._ Johnny flinched away in pain violently. 

”You bastard!” He brought a leg up and kicked with all his might, sending Jaehyun sprawling to the ground. Johnny clutched at his bitten arm in horror. 

Blood rushed to Jaehyun’s ears as his head bumped against the wall of the room. He looked to the side, and his eyes widened when he saw a very familiar-looking gun lying on the floor. 

He grabbed the gun quickly and raised it to meet Johnny’s stunned gaze with shaky hands. 

“Get out of my way!” Jaehyun yelled. 

Johnny stared at Jaehyun nervously. “Jaehyun, that’s… …” 

“Let me go find Doyoung.” The gun in Jaehyun’s hands shook precariously, before he raised it up and pulled the trigger. 

“BANG!”

The gunshot seemed to echo in the empty building. With tears streaming down Jaehyun’s face, he slumped against the wall. 

Now robbed of speech, Johnny stared at Jaehyun, unable to process the thing that happened just now. 

“Jung Jaehyun!” 

_Shit,_ Jaehyun cursed in his head. The police had managed to catch up with him, and had charged into the building with their guns drawn. 

“Drop the gun, now!” Before long, they had surrounded Jaehyun and Johnny, each of them holding up their own guns.

“Hey, hey, wait a minute.” Johnny held his hands up in a placating manner. “It’s all a misunderstanding, I’ll explain.” He glanced at Jaehyun nervously. “Right, Jaehyun?”

Jaehyun glared at Johnny. _Obviously not,_ he huffed in his head mentally. Standing up slowly, Jaehyun drew his gun out too and pointed it at Johnny. His hands shook but he held his ground stubbornly. 

“You… …” Jaehyun had never seen Johnny look so betrayed before, but right now he couldn’t care less. _Now he knows how I feel,_ he thought in childish pettiness. 

“Put the gun down, Jaehyun,” One of the policemen tried saying civilly, but Jaehyun paid him no mind. 

“Please don’t make me shoot,” The police inspector sighed heavily. 

The gun Jaehyun’s hand shook more violently as he pointed it to every policeman in the vicinity, before finally pointing it back to Johnny. 

“Jaehyun,” Johnny took a step forward. “C’mon Jaehyun, drop that.” He tried. He turned to the police too, and barked “What’s wrong with you guys? He’s just a kid!”

“Leave me alone!” Jaehyun yelled. “Why are you holding me up?” He thought of Doyoung, who was still missing, and felt panic reemerge in his heart. “You all know NOTHING!” 

Jaehyun glared at every policeman furiously. “You pretend you don’t. I just want to see him… …” He flung the gun onto the floor with tears in his eyes. The gun clattered on the floor noisily. 

“... … once more!” He ran towards the side but was quickly brought down by the police inspector. The police inspector grabbed onto his hair and slammed him down to the ground painfully. 

“Got him!” 

As Jaehyun’s cheek pressed painfully onto the rough ground, the police inspector rushed to put him in handcuffs. 

“Let go of me!” The police inspector on his body was like a dead weight as Jaehyun struggled on the floor uselessly. He twisted to the side, and made eye contact with a frozen Johnny. With a final desperate attempt, Jaehyun looked at him pleadingly. _Help me,_ he mouthed pathetically. 

It seemed like that was the final straw for Johnny’s soft heart when he ran forward and slammed the two policemen down with his entire body. “Take your hands off Jaehyun, you assholes!”

Jaehyun remained on the ground and stared at Johnny in shock as the two policemen struggled to get up under Johnny’s weight. It looked like the combined strength of the two policemen were still no match for the giant that was Johnny Seo. 

Johnny landed a punch on the police inspector’s face, before turning around to face Jaehyun. 

“Jaehyun, GO!” He roared. 

Jaehyun dashed towards the stairs but was quickly stopped again by the remaining policeman. “Stop!” He shouted, pointing the gun at him. 

“Jaehyun-hyung!” A familiar high-pitched voice came from his side and Jaehyun’s eyes almost bulged out of his sockets. There was only so many shocks his heart could bear in a day. _Was that who he thought it would be?_

Jaehyun’s eyes widened in horror when he saw the boy that was _Jeno Kim_ lunge at the policeman. The poor policeman clearly stood no chance against a small fury-driven boy as Jeno began tearing out tuffs of the man’s hair. 

“ _Jeno_!” He yelled. 

“It’s all your fault, Jaehyun-hyung,” Jeno turned to glare at Jaehyun heatedly with tear-filled eyes. Jaehyun almost gasped in shock. “Bring my brother back!”

A pang of pain hit Jaehyun’s heart. _He was right_ , he realised. Doyoung was something to Jaehyun alright, but he was Jeno’s precious older brother first. With that final bout of encouragement, Jaehyun leaped out of the shattered window and landed on the emergency escape stairs, before climbing up. Jaehyun’s heart almost burst out of his chest when the platform crumbled under his weight. 

With all his strength, Jaehyun _ran._

_(Is there anything love can’t do?)_

As Jaehyun climbed flight after flight of stairs, the sweat trickling down his face stung his open wounds slightly. Doyoung, wait for me, he promised. 

The red _torii_ gate soon fell into his line of sight. 

“Dear God, please, please, please, PLEASE!”

Praying with all his might, Jaehyun crossed the _torii_ gate. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


Jaehyun’s eyes flew open, and he almost had a heart attack. He was _freefalling_ in the open air. As the wind roared in his ears, Jaehyun marveled at the sight of exploding lights and floating clouds. So this is the magical place above the clouds, he thought. The handcuff on Jaehyun’s wrist dangled in the air. 

_This scene, it feels like a dream._

Jaehyun’s eyes widened when he saw the wave-like clouds crashing against each other. He looked around him, he saw teeny tiny fish-looking microorganisms flitting all around him, tapping his cheeks and weaving through his hair, almost as if teasing him. Their bodies seemed to glint in the low light. 

Jaehyun’s brain short-circuited. “Sky fish?” He wondered aloud. 

The roaring of the wind got louder and soon, Jaehyun was sucked into a cloud of … … something. 

“Argh!” He shielded his face with his arms as he travelled through the cloud in turbo-speed, the fish-like organisms slapping against his face. He moved faster, faster _, faster_ , before he was sucked straight into a bright light and emerged from the big mass of cloud. 

Jaehyun remained afloat in the sky and looked around in wonder. The sun was shining bright overhead, and the few mischievous sky fish flitted around his head playfully. It looked as if he was above the clouds, up high in the sky. _I think this was where Doyoung disappeared to,_ Jaehyun thought with a start. 

“Doyoung!” He yelled. “Where are you?”

_(On top of the clouds where the sky-fish amassed was where Doyoung laid._

_“Doyoung!” The sky-fish scattered into the sky at the loud yell._

_Doyoung’s eyes fluttered open and he lifted his head in confusion. The wind rustled around him._

_“Doyoung!” He looked up and—)_

There was Jaehyun flailing in the air, reaching his hands out towards him desperately. “Doyoung!”

“Jaehyun-ah?” Doyoung called out, his heart beating quickly in his chest as he stood up. 

As Jaehyun flew nearer, then further, Doyoung ran forward to reach him. 

“Jaehyun!” As Doyoung reached his hand out, Jaehyun did too, but he was swept up by the wind again. 

When he spotted the near-heartbroken expression on Doyoung’s face, Jaehyun felt a rush of energy surge through his veins. He was _not_ going to let Doyoung and Jeno down like that. 

“Doyoung-hyung, JUMP!” He cried. 

Doyoung’s eyes flashed with determination and with a giant leap, the two of them interlocked hands. _Finally_ ; Jaehyun was ecstatic. 

As Jaehyun scrambled to hold both of Doyoung’s hands tightly, the two of them barreled through the clouds again. 

“Doyoung, I found you!” Jaehyun stared at Doyoung in disbelief, an indescribable feeling stirring in his chest. 

“Jaehyun!” Doyoung gripped their hands tighter, and flashed him a shaky smile. 

“Don’t ever let go of my hands,” Jaehyun told him.

Doyoung nodded determinedly, and Jaehyun’s heart clenched at the frightened look on his face. “We’ll get out of here!”

As weather and fate worked their magic, Jaehyun and Doyoung flew through the sky with only their tightly-clasped hands threatening to tear them apart. 

Suddenly however, the force of the wind ripped their hands apart and Jaehyun almost screamed in anger. _Just when he found Doyoung_ , he thought angrily. _The universe sure hated him, huh?_

Jaehyun tumbled through the air. “Doyoung!” 

“Jaehyun!” Jaehyun could see the terrified expression on Doyoung’s face, and he almost burst into tears again. As Jaehyun freefell in the air, he reached out his hand desperately towards Doyoung. 

“Doyoung-hyung, let’s go home!”

“But if I do, the weather will… …” Doyoung yelled in anguish. 

“It’s okay!” Jaehyun almost wanted to slap Doyoung for even thinking that. 

“Are you sure?” Doyoung asked him.

Jaehyun’s heart almost broke upon hearing Doyoung’s hesitant tone. _Of course!_ He wanted to scream. “Let it rain!” Jaehyun cried, grabbing Doyoung’s hands. 

“Who cares if we can’t see the sunshine anymore?” Doyoung only stared at him in shock, his lips trembling. 

He wanted Doyoung to know that no matter what, Jaehyun would choose him over anything. “I want you more than any blue sky.” Jaehyun surged forward to bring a shaking Doyoung to his chest. 

“The weather can stay crazy for all I care!” As Jaehyun gripped onto Doyoung with all his strength, they fell through the sky above Seoul. 

“You’ve been praying for everyone else for all your life, Doyoung. I want you to pray for yourself. Even if it's just once.”

Doyoung gazed at him, his eyes brimming with unspoken emotions. “Okay,” He nodded. 

Together, they brought their foreheads against each other, pretending that everything was going to be alright. 

  
  
  
  


-

  
  
  


Johnny was led away from the abandoned building in handcuffs. He looked up, and caught a glimpse of the red _torii_ gate. The wind rustled around him. 

“Jaehyun… …”

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning hit the _torii_ gate and Johnny almost got blinded. All at once, a clap of thunder echoed across the area and a heavy rain fell upon them, almost as if a Big Something had tipped a wash basin filled with water over earth. 

  
  


”

Jeno sat at the back of the police car, pressing his face against the window. He stared at the raindrops rolling against the window panes in awe. 

”

Yuta was led by the police in handcuffs. Apparently, someone had tipped to the police that Yuta had been an accomplice for Jaehyun’s escape. He stared at the falling rain, already drenched from head to toe from the sudden downpour. 

”

Johnny gazed at the falling raindrops. He smiled, and thought:

Looks like Jaehyun had found his Doyoung. 

_(Jaehyun and Doyoung lay under the red torii gate, hands linked together, unconscious as Seoul was once again, sunk in endless rain.)_


	2. epilogue

The rain started falling again that day, and never stopped. It was slowly sinking Seoul into the water, the never-rain accumulating as the wet days passed. 

And it’s still falling now, three years later. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


Jaehyun walked home in the rain after his graduation ceremony. He gazed at the endless scenery of hills and the sea, and sighed. Never had he imagined that he would be back in Andong, completing his high school education after the entire fiasco in Seoul.

Suddenly, he heard the light pattering of footsteps behind him, and a high-pitched voice calling his name. 

“Jaehyun-Oppa!” 

Jaehyun turned around and was met by two younger girls who looked vaguely familiar. 

“Um… … You’re moving to Seoul, aren’t you Oppa?” One of the girls asked him. 

Jaehyun stared at them for a while, unaware of their intentions. “Huh? Yeah.”

Her friend elbowed her and gave her what looked like an encouraging smile. “Come on, ask him! It’s now or never.”

The girl clasped her hands together and looked at Jaehyun bashfully. 

Jaehyun sighed internally. After coming back to Andong, the people in his school had made a big fuss about his return, and was constantly showering him with unwanted attention. Jaehyun guessed they found it was cool that he had lived in Seoul all by himself. From then on, Jaehyun was confessed to left and right by blushing girls and he could only smile uncomfortably and decline politely. He was gay in a homophobic and backwards society after all, so he could not just announce his sexuality to deter all his fangirls.

_(Plus, his heart already belonged to one special boy.)_

“You know…. Oppa! There’s something I’ve always wanted to ask you.”

Jaehyun continued looking at her, signalling her to go on. 

“Is it true you are wanted by the police in Seoul?” The girl finally burst out, red-faced, and Jaehyun almost choked on air. _Of all things…._

“Huh?” He spluttered. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


That summer three years ago, Jaehyun was arrested and went on trial. The officials had put him on probation until graduation. He had to continue suffering from his parent’s homophobia, his belittling friends and annoying brothers. So, every day, Jaehyun kept waiting quietly for graduation to come. 

Jaehyun thought of the day he had saved Doyoung from the sky, and smiled sadly. 

He had not seen Doyoung since that day. 

Jaehyun gazed at the ring in his hand, and sighed. 

He had no idea what he would think, seeing how much Seoul had changed, nor what he would say to Doyoung. He still didn’t know. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


_“Tomorrow’s weather for the Gangnam district. It will rain all day again.”_

Jaehyun heaved a tired sigh and looked around his new apartment. “Now I need to find a part-time job….” He muttered to himself.

_“The high will be 15ºC. Same or slightly hotter than in most areas.”_

As the weather forecast blared on, Jaehyun scrolled through his phone mindlessly. _Speaking of part times jobs,_ he thought to himself. When Jaehyun searched it up, he was slightly shocked to see that their sunshine boy website was still online. 

He keyed in the username and password hurriedly, and was greeted by one request from two years ago.

Jaehyun grabbed his jacket and slipped on his shoes hurriedly, before heading out of the door. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


“Look who’s here. Are you alone? Where’s the sunshine boy?”

Jaehyun faced the kind old lady with slight regret. “He’s no longer a sunshine boy, I came just to tell you about that,” Jaehyun told her. 

The old lady took one look at his face, and ushered him inside her apartment. She placed a bowl of snacks on the table, and looked at Jaehyun. 

“Don’t trouble yourself,” Jaehyun said a little guiltily, but the old lady waved him off casually. 

Jaehyun noticed the look on the old lady’s face, and decided to change the subject quickly. 

“You moved,” He noticed. “You used to live in an older house downtown.”

“The whole area is underwater now,” The old lady looked at him with. knowing glance, and Jaehyun felt his heart clench. 

“I’m sorry….” He muttered, before glancing down at his hands. 

The old lady laughed. “Why do you apologise?”

“Umm….” Jaehyun trailed off, looking down, but he couldn’t bear to continue explaining. 

“You know, that area used to be under the sea,” The old lady offered Jaehyun a choco pie. “Until about 200 years go.”

“When Seoul was called Gyeongseong during the Joseon era, it was just a bay.” The old lady poured herself a cup of tea. 

“Human beings and the weather changed it, little by little.” She gazed out of the window pensively, looking at the water level that had already reached the window due to the endless rain. “So well…. I think it has just gone back to how it used to before.”

Jaehyun stared at the old lady. 

_She could be right,_ he mused. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


“What the heck…? You’ve been thinking about that crap for three years?” Jaehyun stood in front of Johnny’s polished desk. He smiled a little to himself. The newly-furnished office sure was a huge glow-up from the dinghy office Jaehyun had worked at three years ago. 

“Don’t say that….” Jaehyun pouted a little. 

“You’re about to start university, but you’re still acting like a kid,” Johnny sighed. He squinted his eyes at Jaehyun suspiciously. “So you two caused all this? You changed the shape of this world?”

Jaehyun nodded. 

“Bullshit!” Johnny snapped. “Don’t flatter yourself, idiot.”

Jaehyun’s heart dropped a little. _Three years later and Johnny was still an asshole,_ Jaehyun thought bitterly. 

Johnny continued typing on his laptop. “Anyway, stop brooding over stupid stuff…. And why haven’t you seen him yet?” 

“I was on probation! I didn’t want to cause him more trouble!” Jaehyun protested. 

“He doesn’t even have a phone….” He mumbled. “And I’m so nervous. I don’t know what to say to him.”

“Shoo, shoo! Get out of here, I have work to do!” Johnny waved him off impatiently. Jaehyun spluttered “I just got here!” but Johnny paid his excuses no mind as he pushed Jaehyun out of his office. 

“Just go to his house.” Johnny declared, and handed him something before shutting the door right in Jaehyun’s face. 

“How welcoming,” Jaehyun muttered. 

However, as he looked down to see what Johnny had put in his hand, he saw a post-it note stuck on his palm. “ _Don’t sweat it, Jaehyun-ah_ ” The note read. “ _The world has always been crazy anyway._ ”

Jaehyun’s heart felt just a little warmer. _Three years later and Johnny was still a big softie at heart_. 

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


Jaehyun walked down the lane, one hand on his umbrella as the rain trickled down. _It was under the sea,_ Jaehyun wondered. _The world was always crazy anyway, so it’s no one’s fault that it’s like this now._

Jaehyun held the ring between his fingers. Is that what he should say to him? 

That was when Jaehyun was struck by a wave of nostalgia, and he lowered his umbrella. 

At the end of the lane was a boy, his hands clasped together, praying. 

Jaehyun’s eyes widened, and startling realisation slammed him in the face. Tears rolled down his cheeks. 

_No, no. That’s not it. On that day, he…. no. They have changed the world. It was Jaehyun’s choice, and Jaehyun’s only. He chose him, he chose this world, he chose to live in it._

Raindrops plonked lightly onto the puddles of water.

A dazzling smile spread over Jaehyun’s face, slowly but surely. 

“Doyoung!”

The boy perked up at the cry of his name, and turned his head slowly, before making eye contact with Jaehyun. The boy’s face immediately lit up with a bright grin. “Jaehyun!” He called. 

The two of them ran towards each other, before crashing together in a tight hug. Jaehyun lifted Doyoung up, the air between them tingling with laughter, before putting him down. Jaehyun’s cheeks ached from smiling too hard. 

Doyoung frowned at him. “What’s wrong Jaehyun-ah? Are you okay?” Only when Doyoung cupped his cheeks and wiped his tears away tenderly did Jaehyun realise that he had been crying all along. 

Jaehyun smiled softly, before taking Doyoung’s hand in his. “Yeah.” He breathed. Jaehyun knew, deep in his heart, that they would be just fine. 

“Hey Doyoung,” Jaehyun whispered. Looking at Doyoung’s bright eyes, Jaehyun’s heart ached with so much _love._

“I’m sure…. we’re gonna be okay.”

  
  
  


-

  
  
  


Jaehyun. 

Doyoung. 

Weather. 

Fate _._

It all boiled down to these magical factors. Two special boys, the earth and the sky, and everything in between. 

Together, they formed the threads that tangled to make the story of Jung Jaehyun and Kim Doyoung. 

That summer day, at the top of the sky, they changed the shape of the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope it was okay…. will appreciate constructive criticism!!!! comments to improve are welcomed! kudos appreciated too ^^ stream punch!

**Author's Note:**

> i hope it was okay…. will appreciate constructive criticism!!!! comments to improve are welcomed! kudos appreciated too ^^ stream punch!


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